Image: Narendra Modi
Tesla is in talks with India to build a factory with a production capacity of 500,000 vehicles, according to a report. It will reportedly produce affordable cars around $25,000.
After years of discussions and finding compromises, Tesla and the government of India mat have moved closer to a real deal. It is reported that Elon Musk has begun negotiations with the government of the country on an investment proposal to create an automobile factory. Its annual capacity should be 500,000 electric vehicles, costing starting at Rs 2 million (about $24,400), government sources told the Times of India (TOI).
In addition to building a factory, Tesla is considering using India as an export base. This would make a lot of sense since a factory in India can supply cars to the Indo-Pacific region. This information was also provided to TOI by government sources.
“Tesla has come to us with an ambitious plan, and we are confident that the movement will be positive this time around, especially as it involves both local manufacturing and exports,” the source said. The commerce and industry ministry is leading the talks and the government is hoping to put together a 'good deal' while maintaining a level-playing field.
Over the past months, we have heard rumors that Tesla is in talks with the Indian government to build an assembly factory in the country. The manufacturer's team also visited India. Further, a few weeks ago, Prime Minister Narendra Modi met with Musk during his US business visit. After that, the Tesla CEO said the prime minister was pushing him to invest in India.
“He [Mr Modi] really cares about India because he's pushing us to make significant investments in India, which is something we intend to do. We are just trying to figure out the right timing,” Musk said in June. “I am confident that Tesla will be in India and will do so as soon as humanly possible.”
© 2023, Eva Fox | Tesmanian. All rights reserved.
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Article edited by @SmokeyShorts; follow him on Twitter
About the Author
Eva Fox
Eva Fox joined Tesmanian in 2019 to cover breaking news as an automotive journalist. The main topics that she covers are clean energy and electric vehicles. As a journalist, Eva is specialized in Tesla and topics related to the work and development of the company.
